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The History of Penshurst
In the 1850s, as the Western District was opening up, a substantial German
population moved to the area from South Australia. Evidence of the German
presence in the region includes a number of Lutheran churches and the remains
of the Krumnow settlement, a breakaway strict
religious settlement established in 1852 and abandoned 28 years later.
Penshurst itself was surveyed in 1851, but was not
officially declared a town until 1861. It retains many historic buildings
along its wide main streets, which were designed to allow bullock teams to
complete Uturns. The Penshurst State School opened
in 1858 and is now privately owned. A Wesleyan Church (1860 - now a private
home), Presbyterian Church (1865 - now Uniting Church) and the bluestone St
Joseph's Catholic Church (1867) were all established in the 1860s, as was the
town's first bank.
When the Mt Rouse Shire was created in 1864, Penshurst was designated as its
major centre. Shire offices and a courthouse accordingly built in that year. However as the district developed it was Hamilton, 31
kilometres away, that became the district capital. A new post office was
constructed in 1878, and a clock installed a decade later. The basalt shire
offices were extended in 1877, and again in 1962.
The Kolor estate is located just south of town and features a Classical Revivalstyle mansion dating to 1868 and constructed from
bluestone. The hexagonal basalt woolshed has since been severed from the
estate but is also visible from the PenshurstWarrnambool
Road or the Mt Rouse lookout.
Mt Rouse is an extinct volcano overlooking the town. It is popular tourist
attraction with walking tracks, barbeque facilities and a lookout giving
excellent views of the town.
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Penshurst Railways Station 1910
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Bullock Team 1900
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